Mahabalipuram (Part 4)

After our visit to the last temple, which was right next to the beach front, we strolled along the little strip of shops, where a bangle lady was sitting with her newborn goat.

Then we went to Moonraker's 3 for Calamari with Madras Masala - OMG!!! And Tiger Prawn -- otherwise known as The Biggest Freakin' Shrimp I've Seen in My Life!

(If you go to Moonrakers, make sure you sit on the roof, where you can listen to the ocean waves and the crackle of the wind through the palm fronds while you eat. Maybe a stray raindrop or ten will fall while you're out there. Or there might even be fireworks.)

Mahabalipuram (Part 3)

We employed our new Aussie friends to help us with the camera, when our over-40 fingers mucked up the works.

This giant rock has balanced for centuries on a hill, with contact to the ground on only the barest amount of surface area.

And, I had my first tender coconut water.

Mahabalipuram (Part 2)

Mahabalipuram (Part 1)

After a few hours to catch up on email, and do some socializing with the team, Raja, Saj and I headed out with my driver, whose name is actually Saravanan (no idea why it was texted to me as Palani originally), to Mahabalipuram.

On the drive there we passed de-salinization plants which are turning sea water into drinkable water for the city of Chennai. Saj said his house is getting the new water, and he notices no difference -- except that all of his pet fish keep dying.

I realized once again that Raja has such a depth of knowledge, that he can hold forth for hours on any topic you throw him… whether it be de-salinization, Gandhi's salt boycott, cricket, mango farming, or the monkeys crossing the road in front of our car!

In Mahabalipuram are a group of temples which were carved top down into a single monolithic stone.

(Interesting tidbit: Raja and Saj's tickets were 10 rupees each; mine was 250 rupees. WTF! While the actual dollar cost is nominal, I cannot imagine European visitors coming to the US, visiting Yosemite or Arches, and agreeing to pay 25 times the US citizen cost to enter.)

Raja fell in love with my iPhone, so we have lots of good shots from our trip there. These posts show only a few.

SanThom

Our next stop was St Thomas Basilica, or SanThom as everyone calls it. Legend has it this Roman Catholic church was built upon the burial spot of Saint Thomas, who was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ. Various tales surround his death near Chennai - whether he was an old man caring for a flock of early Christians who died a peaceful death, or a still enthusiastic evangelist who had drawn the ire of local holy men, who is to say.

We walked through the spitting rain to a building in the back of the main church, removed our shoes, and descended a staircase to an antechamber, where a stern nun cautioned us to keep silent (the threat of ear pulling unstated, but known nonetheless -- and really, what visit to a Catholic church is complete without a nun cautioning one to be quiet?).

Then we entered the burial chamber, a small chapel with a center row and pews on either side. At the top of the room was a clear box containing a reclining bearding mannequin suggesting St Thomas in death. The box was stood directly on dirt exposed through a rectangular hole cut in the stone floor, further urging the belief of the basilica being built directly on the site of the saint's final resting place. A section of human bone, framed in a shadowbox and purported to belong to the saint resting below, hung on a column to the right of the mannequin.

We sat in a pew for a few moments in silent reflection (neither Saj nor myself wanting to experience the Ear Treatment), and then headed out.

We walked through the main cathedral, which had been rebuilt in the 19th century in a British-preferred style, but was decorated in an unmistakably Indian fashion with flowers and bright colors. A female pastor was leading an evening service, reminding me of the evangelical services I've had the unexpected misfortune to attend, with folks in the congregation calling out to the pastor. We sat and observed. It was loud and earthy -- folks quickly going up the center aisle and to the right, to pray before a saint.

As we exited into the drizzle, Saj explained that this particular group of Catholic churches were somewhat more expressive than the RC church he had grown up in and still attends.

Taking the Beach Road

Leaving the temple neighborhood we drove north along (what I think was) Kamarajar Promenade, seeing the Marina Walk along our right against the bay and lots of British-era buildings on the left. People were walking along the Marina Walk, enjoying the late afternoon breezes off the water.

Saj is wealth of historical info having grown up and been educated within Chennai, and makes a very good tour guide -- though he says this is his inaugural journey. He urges me to see past the superficial and seek to understand the essence of Chennai, and India.

The British buildings are beautifully maintained and have expansive lawns. The Governor's office is housed in an estate with a large wall and gate, and since elections were held only last week seems to be in residence -- the place surrounded by uniformed guards.

We turned around, Saj asked Palani to take Marina Beach Road (I think that's what he said). Being an American, I conjured a vision of what Marina Beach Road should look like.

I could not have been more wrong

Saree Party

We had decided I would borrow from Lek's closet to attend Lax's party. This way we have no pressure to find something suitable, and I have no pressure to buy something that may be more dressy than my usual life requires. (Plus the whole Giant Old Lady thing.)

Lax had been telling me about this party for months -- when the family buys and presents the daughter with her first saree, and then introduces her to the world.

I had assumed it would have religious or ritualistic overtones -- a script to follow… here she is before, here she is after…. I didn't see any of that. If a script exists, Lax opted for a more casual performance.

What I did see was a chance for people to dress up in their most beautiful clothing -- and I do mean, there were some breathtakingly beautiful sarees there -- and most glamorous makeup -- and have their pictures taken.

After the unveiling of Mellissa and Jasmine in their beautiful new sarees, a receiving line started at the left of the stage and each family filed across, tossing rice onto the girls' heads, and taking their photo opp.

Lek and I, being the non-traditional girls you know and love, worked our way through the untouched -- and very delicious -- buffet line (twice), and slipped through the artful fence into the male dominated bar section. I ordered a Kingfisher and we ate while watching the photos. The girls were becoming tired you could tell, of smiling for so long.

We had to leave early by IST, as I'm flying to Chennai on Monday morning, so we slipped out the door when the entertainment started.

Very nice party indeed!

This is the cook I tripped on

Monday Afternoon

On Monday I went back to Lax for the day.

I dropped Lek and NB at the office, and their driver took me into town. This was the first time I've taken a drive unchaperoned, and taken a long drive in the day light. I can't find another word to describe it besides overwhelming. It is exhausting driving through the crazy traffic, even from the backseat.

When I arrived I learned to my delight they had held lunch for me -- and what a lunch it was! As usual, I didn't take notes and as such have probably forgotten what I ate… I think there was dal and rice, and I know there were three desserts.

One of them was a variation on the gulab jamun we had at the Westin, and I think this one is called kala jamun -- whatever it's called, it is fantastic! And I think Pad made it!!!

(As an aside, here is a website I've found -- an American girl cooking Indian -- there are recipes and cooking tips. Take a look.)

Next, we went looking at banquet halls for a party Lax's family is having. When a girl reaches a certain age, the family buys her first saree and has, basically, an unveiling party. Since we were travelling to India this year, Maataaji wanted to have a large family party and this was a handy excuse. Due to some unforeseen issues, the planning had to be left until the last minute. So now we were scrambling.

We drove to see four different halls. This was in addition to the four or so Lax had seen the day before. Two were meh, and were really not worth the time and effort in the traffic it took us to get there. Two were very nice.

We were gone about four hours on this errand, for something that -- in Charlotte, including distance, traffic, and viewing time -- would have taken less than two.

Bangles and Beer

Sunday night we went to dinner at the Westin in HiTech City, as Lek and NB's friend Ro was in from Delhi.

This is a beautiful upscale hotel that could just as well been set down in San Francisco, Paris, Tokyo. There was a beautiful 'green wall' of live plants as we walked down the stone staircase to the Indian restaurant, Kangan.

The restaurant had a very cool wall where hundreds of bangles hung from wooden dowels.



The service was great. The food was fabulous, I really don't remember everything I ate -- definitely not the names of the dishes -- but I know there was fish and I know there were lady fingers (okra -- which I would never eat in the US). As an appetizer there was a hung cheese (WTF) and herb patty that was lightly fried on each side. I had a coupla Kingfishers. At the end we shared a wonderful dessert tray.



As we were leaving we were treated to a complimentary bangle, which was hand-made while we waited.

The Bath

I did my own bathing, thank you very much. This was my first Indian shower, so I had to remember the technique from conversations (thank you again, Atit, you've been my font of needful information).

Most Indian bathrooms don't have enclosures separating the spraying water from the other fixtures -- they figure water is water and it's ok if it splashes around. Typically a big bucket is filled with water from a faucet on the wall, and the shower-er takes a big plastic cup and pours water over himself. The washing and rinsing is done with the big cup. Easy peasy, right?

Except, to continue the comical disconnects of the day, a plumbing repair had come at just this hour, so the water in the house was turned off. Someone had filled two big buckets (somewhere…) and brought to the bathroom in prep.

I did ok. For my first time. It takes practice to implement a new process. :-D

Maybe I didn't rinse enough, definitely I didn't get all the oil off. But I will do better next time.

After I was done with my massage and my ablutions, Padma insisted that I nap. And when I awoke the entire troupe of travelers were asleep on the bed in the air conditioned bedroom.

It was a very good nap.

And then I made my way to Lek's.

First Massage

After lunch, with fifteen minutes to digest, I was again shepherded through the house to a quiet room, where I was left to the capable hands of the masseuse. Pad had sent out for olive oil for my massage, and Yesh kept asking if I wanted garlic with that. I thought , if we add some lemon juice to my hair and some red pepper flakes, I can be scampi.

As she was bustling away I asked Pad where can I shower afterwards… to get the olive oil off. "Do you want her to bathe you as well?" Pad asked. And she was serious. 8-O

Ummm, no. Thank you for the kind offer. I can manage. 8-{

The massage was excellent! The masseuse had nice strong hands and took long deep strokes. We had a language gap, so there was no talking required. She massaged my head and did some spinal stuff I'd never had before. I was very relaxed when it was all over.

Very nice after a long flight.

Between Breakfast and Lunch

The struggle for connectivity continued -- Yesh spent time reaching out to help desks about his phone and his dongle. His clients back in the US were waiting for his assistance. And all around him in the air conditioned bedroom the party continued.

We learned that the driver who was thought to come to pick me was out of pocket, so Lax's family had a discussion and made other plans for me to travel to Lek's.I just listened, and trusted they knew best.

Somehow the conversation turned to ayurveda and massage, and Pad was excited to know how much I loved massages. So she got on the phone and scheduled her own masseuse to come to the house for me. That day. That very afternoon. For less than $10!!

Presently wonderful smells filled the house and it was time again to eat. I was shepherded into the dining room with Lax, where we had wonderful food…. Cannot remember now what, but I know that Pad was mothering, making sure I had the best morsels. She was standing over and bustling around and adding food to my plate, but she would not sit. "No, no, I will eat presently."

Only at the very end did it hit me that Lax and I were the only females amongst a crowd of men. Though there were many females in the house, but none were eating. After the men left the table, only then did the women of the house sit for lunch.

Chithrapu's Latest

Today Chithrapu told me that, while in Chennai, I need to order Madras Coffee, because the exhibition involved in making and pouring the coffee, is as important as drinking it.

(But I have to confirm in advance they made it with bottled water!)

Conspicuous Consumption Part 2

While I love a great accessory, I personally do not enjoy wearing bangles.

They get in my way while trying to use the keyboard and mouse -- making it very difficult to be productive in my work. Not a good fashion accessory for a geek. However, I do appreciate their beauty and am really excited to scour the bazaar in search of gifts for friends.

 Inspiration: